Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1887-05-12

1t is hidden things that human ma
ture eternally Graves. When Mr.. Mont
ague gets the boys on a string they
know where the thing is hid to
which he leads them. If they merely
thought they knew he would lead them
there all the same.
How happiness is the ever-hidden
thing which every man is seeking; and
every man, of course, has his mind on
the place where it is supposed to be.
Society being made of many men of
many minds, it is therefore everywhere,
or nOwhere-the eternally unbound. |
But between such as locate it alike |
there is formed a certain sympathetic |
cord. Somebody catches on and goes
ahead in quest of 1t, as he is impelled. |
He often fancies himself leader, when |
he is merely creature of impulsion.
Half the leadership of the world is of
this or'ler, and there is no leader who is
not largely charged with the will and
purpose of those whom he is supposed
to have on the string. The more sensi-
tive and impressiOnal the leader, the
more fully he becomes part of those
whom he leads; and though his conduct
may sometimes lack the severe consis-
tency of the despotic boss, his power
will be far greater.
The late Henry Ward Beecher was
eminently leader of the mind-read-
ing, sympathetic, impulsion order. His
audience always had him on string
The pews of Plymouth Church were all
connected by one sympathetic cord
which terminated in the pulpit. Ionce
heard him say that on not few occa-
sons when the conditions were especial
ly good, he had preached sermons with
out knowing when he got home word
of what he had said.
His imputed "bread and water" lee
ture had so incensed the working peo-
pie that when he was invited to appear
beside Mr.. Parnell and speak in the
Brooklyn Academy of Music tremen-
dous uproar ensued, so that when he
arose to speak cries of "Shame! shame!
bread and waterm went up. Yet this
same Beecher went on and delivered
the most radical address on land reform
that up to that time had been heard on
either side of the water, mingled with
such scathing denounciation of the op-
pressors of labor as caused his enemies
of an hour ago to bound from their seats
in feverish applause.
! A fiippant judgement settles such
contradictions at once by the rash
brand-mark, ,ofhypocrisy. take it. how
ever, that Mr.. Beecher's great powers
| were seated in so highly susceptible 9nd
J sympathetic a nature that when the
, circuit was fully opened between him
: self and his audience the latter had him
on string and impelled him whittier
) their will and purpose directed.
Even the terrible iron figure of Bis
marck is to remarkable degree tenn
r pered with this quality. Years ago
when George Bancroft was our Ger
man ambassador at Berlin, the resident
: Americans celebrated Thanksgiving by
t having regular turkey dinner at the
v Hotel de Rome. Chief among the in.
e vited guests was Bismarck, whose over.
= awing presence at first chilled the ap.
/ petite of not few humble plebeians
o like myself at the table. But as the
e feast developed, the great minister grad
d ually became more American thar
e Americans themselves, and after he hat
washed down the vanquished bird will
l, his usual astonishing quantum of ray
brandy he was the chattiest, merries
% and most Democratic fellow in tn
rs crowd.
n After Mr.. Bancroft had delivered
2; neat little German speech, laudatory O
e the Emperor and the empire, the pom
h derous man of blood and iron arose ant
e capped it with speech so thorough,
is American in spirit and so clean GU
is Democratic in sentiment, that the rath
IS er stiff and diplomatic Bancroft SCENE
embodiment of Democracy, "Creatul
loe Ioetsoxy child oeH cctl
lie he said, II am by education and pre-
as fession an imperialist. Were I not that
1e could be nothing less than an America
in Democrat"
re A German student who left the ha
ne with me, remarked soto VOce, after "
rs reached the street: SWELL that w.
he good Democracy enough to tickle IL
I'd fifth rib of all Yankeedoodledom bl
tn we Germans know enough how I'll
er cunning Pomeranian is the greatest Ii
lie ing master of the art being all things
ed all men, and such gush simply max
v, us SMILE"
to Yet I believe that for the time beil
Bismarck was sincere, for there was I
or special diplomatic purpose in t,as the
ng was when he took the South Germ:
n delegates to Kiel and kept them into1
as Gated for three days and three nights {
st, board frigate in order to win the
of over to his naval appropriation schen
ue The fact is that Mr.. Bancroft, whom
greatly admired, and the rest of t.
i'd, guests got him on the string, with Il
he help of roast turkey, raw brandy, al
an atmosphere thoroughly charg
er. with Democracy.
ice Impulsion and propulsion are the tV
We necessary factors of all social dynamic
ID, How often does the end man on sol
'ut string of social activity fancy in
m; conceit that he is leading the crow
when in reality it is the crowd behil
till that is impelling and propelling hi
ng A deaf and blind man in my town is
= by a stick through the crowded stree
the stick being merely a medium
is communication between him a
it mother earth. But how many hum
he sticks arrogate to themselves leadersf
ZEN over their fellows, when they are si
,he ply media of communication betwe
wn those behind them and their purpos
nd and aspirations.
she Innumerable social strings are har
er- ing loose around us, charged with
red finite human purposes. We catch
EN- to one, and soon find a certain followi
'et, behind us, impelling us in search
something which they wish to attai
We are good leaders in proportion as
re. sustain complete sympathetic relatiC
,ro with tbOco yh0 i'm mol uc Wa hooo,